A/N: The response has been amazing. I've received so many Story Alerts and Author Alerts, and I'd just like to thank you all so much! You've all spurred me on so much.

Special thanks to my Beta – you know who you are

Also, I'd like to thank Jen (Angel's blue eyed girl) for promoting me! YOU ROCK *grins* Thank you!

I've played with a few scenes from Season One in this chapter; I do hope that y'all will like it. At least a little.

'You've been avoiding me for the last few days and all of a sudden you want to take me to the summer banquet at the Lockwood's?' Elena's eyes flashed with anger at Damon, where they were standing by the bleachers just before cheer practice was about to start.

Damon seemingly squirmed, but Elena knew him well enough to know that he thought he'd done nothing wrong.

'Look, I've been busy. Something came up…'

He gave her a flirty smile and moved closer to her, but she held her hand up.

'You might have been able to treat girls however you wanted before, Mr. Suave, but that crap's not working on me. Either you tell me what you've been up to or it's a definite no, now and in the future.'

The other girls had started filing onto the field, eyeing the couple curiously, but no one was being too obvious about it. Not until Caroline Forbes showed up, that is.

'Lover's tiff?' she quipped cheekily while sorting her ponytail out.

Elena tilted her head and frowned at Caroline. Surprisingly Damon tagged along with the light banter.

'You know, Caroline, you're right. I've been a really bad boy not calling Elena when I should've.' The smile he gave Caroline and the rest of the squad was so disarming, you could literally hear their panties drop one by one. 'And now', he turned towards Elena with a little pout, 'she's blowing me off and won't even let me make it up to her by taking her out.'

Elena rolled her eyes at him.

'It's not even a proper date, Damon. You're taking me to the Lockwood's summer banquet. Carol Lockwood throws one every year.'

'Oh my god, Elena,' Caroline interrupted. 'Please let Damon take you out and he can bring Stefan. We could totally double date.'

Damon wiggled his eyebrows at Elena, nodding his head with such fake enthusiasm; she started smiling against her will. Shaking her head she eyed both of them suspiciously.

'You do know this is such a cliché from some cheesy chick flick? The guy apologizing to the girl by using her friends as pawns.'

Damon smiled and nudged her at the side with his elbow.

'Well, did it work?'

She glanced up at him, still smiling.

'Yes.'

'Well in that case,' he turned to the Caroline and the girls and bowed down, 'thanks for your participation ladies, I believe she said yes.'

'You didn't really ask them to help you convince me, did you?' Elena asked Damon after she'd finished practice and he her drove home.

'A gentleman never tells,' he smirked earning himself a light slap on his arm, but Elena was still smiling all the way home.

'What are you up to, Damon? I know you; you wouldn't just go to that banquet without an agenda and I want to know what it is before I let you drag me into anything with you.' Stefan was standing in front of his brother with his arms crossed and his chin raised high. Uncle Zach looked at the both of them from where he was sitting on the sofa in the library. Damon himself was lounging casually in one of the oversized armchairs leaning his head back and laughed.

'Why are you so tense, brother? Elena wanted to go to the banquet, I said yes and she asked if you could take Caroline because Caroline fancies you.' He eyed Stefan up and down and frowned. 'Not that I get why she'd want to hang around you, you're such a party pooper.' Then he shrugged. 'I'm just the messenger. Take it or leave it. Or you could go as my chaperone, to make sure I won't do anything stupid and reckless.'

He jumped out of the armchair and turned to Stefan with a devilish smile.

'I think you, my brother, need to get laid. So why don't you just get down and dirty with Blondie, a little roll in the hay wouldn't hurt you. You're so uptight it makes my eyes sore and that stick up your ass must be chafing just a tad.' With that he grabbed a tumbler of bourbon and walked outside to stand on the patio at the back of the house, looking out over the woods surrounding the Salvatore grounds.

It was around noon so the sun was set high in the sky, Damon leaned his head back and closed his eyes before opening them again to take a swig of the tumbler he'd brought with him.

In less than four months he'd see Katherine again. He inhaled deeply, smelling the sunkissed leaves from the weeping willows further along the edge of the forest, near the creek on the other side of the low stone wall that his ancestors built to mark their land once upon a lifetime ago.

He rolled his neck to relieve some of the tension that had been building up inside of him over the past week. What had happened with Elena hadn't just passed him by. It had really upset the normalcy he'd built around himself for the last decade or so. In laymen's terms; it had freaked him the hell out.

Yes, he had been out of town for a few days, but for a good reason− Elena. No matter what he did or who he fed on, she was always there in the back of his mind trying to force her way through the huge boulder of resistance hiding his humanity. He wasn't human. He would never be human again. He didn't wish to be human. And she wasn't anything more than a bleak copy of the girl owning his real affections.

What had freaked him out the most was that he had actually been thinking about her feelings when he had turned her down. (Yea there was no other way around it. He'd wanted to take a fire poker and stick it through his brain to make sure he hadn't lost it somewhere in the midst of all that 'feeling' crap she'd been throwing at him.) Since when did he not eat what was served? That's when he thought it was time to lay low for a bit, let it all cool down.

Get the hell outta Dodge.

When he had left it was with the intention not to come back until it was time to get Katherine out. He usually never cared who he picked up or who he fed from, but this time he'd been prowling the streets never stopping unless his would-be victim had long dark chocolate hair and honey colored skin. He'd turned his car around somewhere outside of Charlotte in the end and headed straight back to Mystic Falls and Elena.

He glanced sideways as he heard footsteps approaching.

'Fine,' he heard Stefan say behind him. 'I'll go with you to the banquet. But don't disappoint me, and don't disappoint Elena.'

Damon turned and faced his brother.

'Now how would I ever be able to disappoint you, Stefan?'

Damon drove up to the Gilbert house to pick Elena up late Sunday afternoon to go to the banquet together. Elena had insisted that he came by since it was 'a date.' He rang the doorbell and straightened his suit jacket. Jeremy Gilbert opened the door, looking like a typical sulky teenager, much like Stefan did every day come to think of it.

'Who are you?' Jeremy asked without the slightest inclination to step aside to let Damon in.

'I'm Elena's date.'

Jeremy's scowl broke into a smile.

'Does our Dad know about that?'

'I wouldn't know until you let me in, now, would I?' Damon smiled back, steel in his voice.

'Uh, sorry, man.' Jeremy opened the door wide and walked inside with Damon just behind him.

'Mom. Dad. Elena's date is here.' Jeremy smirked enunciating every word. Damon rolled his eyes at him.

As Grayson Gilbert came through from the kitchen together with Miranda, Jeremy squeezed past them and grinned mischievously. 'Her older date', he stage whispered before disappearing through the doorway out of sight. Damon had to give it to him, the kid had spunk.

He turned to Elena's parents and bowed slightly.

'Mrs. Gilbert. Mr. Gilbert. Pleasure to meet you again.' He smiled, being careful to show a bit of his white teeth.

'Miranda, would you go tell Elena her friend has arrived, please?' Grayson said, not letting his eyes leave Damon. Miranda looked like she might say something, but a glance at her husband's hard-set features; she just nodded and scurried up the stairs towards Elena's room.

'You are up to something, vampire. I don't know what, but I know you are. Don't bring my daughter into this, or I will tell everyone about you. And don't think I won't…' Damon cut him off by shoving him into the wall before he'd managed to finish his sentence.

'Despite my dazzling exterior, I am older than you, and therefore, may I add, also a lot wiser. So let me give you some advice, Gilbert.' Damon moved in closer, one hand around his throat and the other in a tight grip on his shirt to keep him in place. 'Do not cross me. If you so much as breathe to anyone about what I really am, I will rip your precious little daughter's heart out and feed on it.'

Damon took a step back and straightened out Grayson's wrinkled shirt which he'd grabbed when pushing him into the wall, and gave him an icy smile. 'Now let's just call that leverage.'

'You…' Grayson's face looked ashen against his dark clothes. 'You bastard.' He practically spat the words out.

'I've been called worse.' Damon looked up towards the stairs and his features softened.

Elena stepped daintily across the landing and down the stairs. She was wearing a new dress that she'd bought especially for this occasion. It was a sleeveless dress in hot pink chiffon with a fitted waist hugging her curves in just the right places. It had a draped front and a flared skirt that ended just below the knee showing off her tanned legs. She wore her hair up but had left soft curls that gently coiled around her face.

'Elena,' Damon breathed. 'You look beautiful.' He lent her his hand to help her down the last two steps and softly kissed her on the cheek. She blushed and he felt an unusual fluttery feeling inside of his chest. He swallowed hard and straightened his shoulders to get rid of it, while keeping her hand in his and started walking her towards the door.

'Oh no,' she chirped all of a sudden. 'I forgot my purse. Sorry Damon, I'll be right back.' She hurried up the stairs, where her mother stood, hand on her throat and tears in her eyes. Damon met Miranda's gaze but faltered to keep it, so he looked away. Suddenly Grayson Gilbert was standing right in front of him.

'If I trust you, vampire, you have to trust me too. You just did the one thing that would ensure that your secret is safe with me; you threatened the life of my child. But you have to give me your word that you won't let any harm come to her.' Damon's head snapped up and his blue eyes met Grayson's deep brown. 'Your word.' Grayson's voice was calm and level. Damon nodded.

'I need to hear you say it.'

Damon's jaw set. There were many things that he did that was wrong. There were many things that maybe he should regret ever doing. There were many things that he did which he enjoyed because it was sick and twisted and he was bored. But there was one thing he never did; he never broke his word.

'If you do as I say, Gilbert, I promise, I won't let anyone harm your daughter.'

Grayson let out a deep breath just as Elena came back down the stairs, purse in hand.

'Good.'

Damon turned to Elena and offered her his arm, which she took waving her parents goodbye.

'Have fun darling,' Miranda said quietly, so quietly Damon didn't think Elena could hear her. 'Be careful out there.'

Arriving at the Lockwood's conjured up a lot of memories for Damon, memories he wasn't too fond of. He led Elena up to the threshold of the large estate and stopped just shy of entering. He politely let Elena make small talk to Carol Lockwood, who asked them to come in and enjoy their evening. Damon smiled at the elder woman, trying not to smirk. He was in! If the old wench only knew who she'd just invited into her home.

'Let's get a drink,' Damon said, trying to find out where Stefan was in the crowd so he could keep an eye on him. If he remembered correctly the old ball room should be on his left while the staircase towards the private quarters just off to the right. He casually looked around to kick his memory into gear. All of a sudden they heard a high squeal, and he sighed inwardly.

'Guess Blondie's here with my brother,' he said to Elena who gave him a small frown. He smirked at her. 'Alright; Caroline− but I'm only saying it for your benefit.'

They walked up to Caroline, her arm securely tucked under Stefan's. She gave them a huge smile showing off her dimples and her blonde hair bounced around her petite face.

'Yay, you're here, I've been looking everywhere for you,' she said and gave Elena a quick hug without destroying neither hair nor makeup. 'Stefan says he doesn't know how to dance, but he tells me you're a great dancer, Damon, so I'm gonna have to steal you for a dance right now, cause I'm officially bored.' She quickly turned to Stefan while making a grab for Damon's hand. 'No offense Stefan, but I really wanna dance.'

'None taken, 'Stefan smiled.

'Look, I'm really not a good dancer,' Damon tried but Caroline tugged his sleeve.

'Oh come on, Damon.' She literally pouted. 'You won't mind if I steal him for a second, will you Elena?'

Elena laughed and gently pushed Damon towards her friend.

'Of course not. Caroline won't take no for an answer, so you might as well. I'll just wait here with Stefan while you two go dance. Just remember to save me one,' she said, still laughing at Damon's obvious discomfort.

'What the hell are you doing?' Damon demanded as soon as they'd rounded the corner when Stefan and Elena were out of sight. Damon grabbed Caroline's arm roughly and dragged her to an adjoining room and shut the door behind them. 'I thought I told you to keep Stefan occupied tonight. So, what ...' He stopped himself. 'Stefan told you to ask me to dance with you, didn't he?' His eyes were ablaze as he scanned Caroline's face. She had tears glistening in her eyes and she was visibly shaking.

'No, of course not, Damon, you're hurting me. Please let me go.'

He ignored her pleas; instead he grabbed her other arm as well and shook her to get her to focus.

'Compulsion,' he whispered, his jaw working overtime, trying not to lash out at this young girl who Stefan was trying to manipulate when he was still on animal blood. Dear sweet brother, your compulsion is too weak.

He went completely still and stared up at her. 'Right, seeing as you're here, you might as well help me out.'

Damon took a deep breath to calm down.

'You're fine, Caroline,' he soothed and stroke her hair gently. Caroline stopped shaking and nodded, her eyes on his.

'I'll be fine,' she mumbled back.

'Yes you will. You're just going to help me out, and then we're back to plan A; making sure Stefan is a busy little bee so he won't get in my way, ok?'

'I'm going to help you out, 'Caroline repeated slowly, before Damon grabbed her hand and pulled her with him towards another door leading up to the stairs. Caroline seemed to snap out of the daze and went back to her normal bubbly self.

'But I did really well when I helped you out before, right? You're glad Elena's not mad at you so you could get to the party, right?'

'Right,' Damon mumbled and shook his head, looking around to make sure no one could see them.

'Oh goodie,' Caroline smiled and giggled.

'So, are you having a good time, Elena?' Stefan offered his arm to her, which she took, and they slowly made their way across the room towards the huge garden in the back.

'We just got here, but I'm sure I'll have a great time.' She smiled at him, and then tilted her head a little. 'How come you and Damon don't get along, if you don't mind me asking?'

Stefan stopped and turned towards Elena, his smile thoughtful. He seemed to contemplate what to tell her.

'Damon isn't an easy person to be around most of the time. He rarely forgets, never forgives. While I wish to keep the past in the past, he keeps dragging it up time and again. He chooses not to forget anything that's happened, and he takes pleasure in reminding me about it.'

Stefan looked at a spot just above Elena's head before he continued, looking as if he wasn't sure he should continue, but eventually he met her gaze again.

'And then there was this girl, whom he loved very much, but who unfortunately used him and his affection against him.' Stefan sighed. 'It hurt him deeply.'

'What was her name?'

'Her name was Katherine.' Stefan smiled sympathetically. 'It was a long time ago though, Elena. I'm sure it has nothing to do with his actions these days. I'm just saying that he's got a lot of baggage.'

Elena managed to conjure up a smile.

'Well, I bet if you'd take the time to talk to each other and really listen to one another, you'd be able to work it out, Stefan. I'm sure of it.' She suddenly thought of something. 'Do you know why Damon left and where he went? He won't tell me.'

'I guess that's what you get when you're with Damon. That's what he's like. You're just going to have to take it or leave it with him. Try to change him and he'll throw a hissy fit.' Stefan laughed. 'Look, I'm sure wherever he went, he'll tell you eventually. But if he doesn't and you still want to know, maybe you have to ask yourself if he's the one for you in the end.'

Stefan put her hand back in the crook of his arm and they started walking again. Elena's forehead was creased and she kept biting the inside of her lip trying not to think of what Stefan had just told her. Would Damon always run off somewhere and not tell her? Would he just disappear one day and not come back? She wasn't one of those needy girls, but she still needed to be able to trust the person she was with, and in return, she expected them to trust her back.

Stefan glanced over at Elena, who was deep in thought. He wasn't happy about what he'd done tonight, but she needed to be warned and from what Caroline had told him about Elena, she wouldn't take a straight out warning too kindly. She liked giving people the benefit of the doubt, so he'd gone for a different approach. He was now officially, what Caroline called it; a doubt planter.

'Stand right…there', Damon said and positioned Caroline facing the entrance of one of the many rooms on the second floor of the Lockwood estate. He proceeded to pick up a heavy wooden box with an intricate pattern carved into the lid and moved it to a table in the middle of the room. He opened the box and removed one of the small panels lining the inside, showing a small hidden space where he retrieved a large piece of jewelry.

Caroline turned around at the sound and walked up to him. He was turning the jewelry around in his hand letting the light shine through the amber colored stone, which was attached to the back of a pendant.

'You're not supposed to touch,' Caroline quipped nervously. The room was filled with old memorabilia that was going to be used for the coming Founder's Council's Heritage display later on in the year. A lot of families had already started to gather up some of their keepsakes for the day in question. And the reason Caroline knew about this was that her mother had muttered something about how it was hard enough being a cop in this town, but now all founding families were going to keep their heirlooms on show without security for anyone to steal.

'What is that?' she asked when Damon said nothing. He was closing the box after putting the panel back in place.

'It's a very important crystal', he mumbled while returning the box to its original spot.

'Well, how did you know it was there?' Caroline queried.

Damon sighed.

'Because I put it there.'

'When?' Caroline wasn't going to give up that easily.

'A long time ago' he said, emphasizing the words. He took one last look at the crystal before putting it into the pocket of his trousers. 'And tonight I'm taking it back, thanks to you.' He started ushering her out of the room.

'What's it for?' Caroline kept prodding and Damon started was tiring of the twenty questions. He grabbed her arm and pulled her with him.

'Never you mind.'

'Well, you can't just steal it,' Caroline said, indignantly.

Damon stepped in front of her with a glare.

'It's not stealing if it's mine. Now let's go.'

Damon enjoyed the feel of the crystal so close to him. It was an important tool to free Katherine, and he'd waited many years to retrieve it. Being dead had its advantages, but sometimes the disadvantages outweighed the positives. Like having to be invited in.

When he'd come back to Mystic Falls, he'd overheard Caroline and her friends talking at the Grill about the banquet like it was prom (for crying out loud, as if it mattered) and he'd approached her to find out when it was going down. In the midst of it she'd confessed that Elena was on the war path against him for skipping town (sometimes the lose tongue on Blondie was a godsend), so he decided to get some leverage.

He compelled Caroline and a few of the girls on the cheer squad, making sure that whatever happened, Elena was taking him to the banquet with her. His second option would have been going with Caroline, but he was glad his plan hadn't backfired. Elena was looking stunning tonight and he couldn't wait to get back to her, but when he rounded the corner to where he last saw Elena and Stefan they were nowhere to be found.

'Wonder where Stefan and Elena are?' Caroline said, more to herself than Damon, but there was a coloring to her tone that grabbed his attention. Something close to insecurity and Damon's senses were on high alert in an instant. He'd always sensed that Stefan had a weakness for Elena, but hearing it voiced (in not so many words) from Caroline made the adrenaline pump around his veins like a tornado breaking large trees like they were match sticks.

'Come on,' he urged her on. 'I bet I know where they are.'

They found Stefan and Elena on the dance floor.

'So much for not knowing how to dance', Damon whispered in Caroline's ear. She flinched at his words and he relished in her discomfort.

'Why would Stefan lie to me?' Caroline's bottom lip quivered.

Damon turned away from the couple on the dance floor because if he looked at them another second he'd have to rip someone to pieces. He'd clearly stated that Elena was his, and Stefan had ignored the warning.

'Because Stefan's a douche.'

Damon ordered a scotch neat at the bar and a glass of champagne for Caroline.

'Keep an eye out for my Mom, ok, so she won't see me drinking champagne.' she sniffled and wiped her eyes a little with a handkerchief Damon gave to her. 'She's the sheriff.' He nodded absently (as if he could give a damn) and brought the tumbler to his lips. He glanced over at Caroline who was sipping the champagne obviously trying to regain some of her dignity.

'You know that you're just a rebound for Stefan, right?' he said callously. Caroline's head whipped back with a wounded look on her face, but Damon was relentless. He was angry and hurt and seething. Elena was openly flirting with his brother and he was just supposed to stand there and take it? No way. 'Stefan's still hung up on this other girl, Katherine.' Damon glanced over his shoulder. Elena was smiling widely as Stefan leaned in and said something in her ear. A muscle twitched in Damon's jaw and he turned back.

'Yea, I don't think he'll ever get over her.'

'But he said he liked me.'

Damon chuckled softly.

'Of course he would.' He looked over at the blonde girl next to him. 'He'd say anything to get into your pants, but you were already willing, weren't you? Whether or not he would've said it?'

Caroline gasped and stared at him, tears slowly making an appearance again. He smirked back at her.

'Why are you so mean to me?' she whined.

'Because I can. Because you let me. And because I'm bored.'

'I don't even get what Elena sees in you.' Caroline said quietly, once again using the handkerchief to bat the corners of her eyes.

Damon decided to change tactics.

'Look, I'm sorry', he said and reached out to dry a stray tear that was gliding down her cheek. 'I'm having a bad night and my brother is getting on my nerves trying to wind me up. I shouldn't take it all out on you.' He searched her eyes and winked at her.

'No, you shouldn't.' Caroline gave him a tiny smile.

'Does that mean that I'm forgiven?' He asked cheekily, using light compulsion to make her agree.

She nodded, her smile growing, showing off her perfect set of teeth.

He hesitated, but lifted his hand to her cheek and pulled some of her hair behind her ear. Her breath caught.

'What are you doing?'

'You're a beautiful girl, Caroline. Has anyone ever told you that?' To his amusement the comment earned him a blush. 'Well, Stefan's a fool if he doesn't see what I see.'

'I don't see what exactly?' They heard Stefan's low voice next to them. Damon slowly lowered his arm and he turned to Stefan and Elena standing in front of them.

'What exactly don't I see?' Stefan said again, staring between them with cold eyes.

Damon swallowed hard. He wouldn't look at Elena at first, but then he did he raised his chin and smirked at her. She had an unreadable look on her face, but he could see that she was trying really hard not to cause a scene.

'I think Bonnie was looking for you earlier, Caroline,' Stefan said and pulled Caroline out of her seat. 'Let's go see if we can find her.'

Elena gave him a grateful smile and he squeezed her shoulder gently. An act that made Damon's world shrink another notch, focusing solely on how not to rip his brother's throat open and he could feel the heat of his insides trying to burst out. But in taking a deep breath he calmed himself enough to meet Elena's accusing eyes.

'What are you doing, Damon?' Her voice was cold just like her eyes.

'What?' Damon smirk grew wider. 'You're having fun with my brother; it's only fair I have some fun with his date.'

'Why are you acting like such a jerk?' she huffed.

'Please, if I wanted to act like a jerk, you'd notice.'

Elena narrowed her eyes and walked up to him, so close he could smell her Díor perfume mixed with that heady scent of her own personal fragrance. The scent that made his mouth water and his dick twitch in his trousers. Tonight was no exception.

'You're being an ass for a reason and I wanna know why.' He could literally see the light switch come on in her brain. Uh-oh, not a good sign. His last minute plan seemed to fail quite quickly. 'You're not doing it to make Stefan jealous; you're doing it to warn me off you. Why?'

'What?' Damon scoffed. 'Look, honey. I don't have to warn anyone off me, they should already know what I'm like. What you see is what you get, Elena. I've already told you that.'

'This isn't you, Damon. I've seen the real you. I know you. You're just doing this to prove to yourself that you don't feel anything for me. This is you trying to push me away.'

Damon's eyes flashed with anger and he stood up, nearly toppling the bar stool over.

'You don't know me. You don't know the first thing about me. I don't care about you. You were fun to be around until you started talking about feelings. I don't do feelings, Elena.'

Elena raised her chin and looked up at him.

'There you go, trying to scare me off again. But guess what, Damon Salvatore, I'm not going to disappear just because you're afraid of emotions. This person, this isn't who you really are.'

'And how would you know that?' Damon spat out. 'From holier than thou Stefan? Trust me on this one, whatever you heard about me from Stefan is all true. He's the one person who wouldn't try to sugarcoat what I'm like.'

Elena looked at him for a long while until her features softened and their breathing slowly started returning to normal. She reached out and put a hand against his cheek. He flinched, but she wouldn't withdraw her hand.

'He's the only person, except yourself, isn't he?' she said softly, her gaze firm and unrelenting.

Damon's jaw clenched and unclenched in an attempt to regain his bearings. This girl was so damn stubborn. Couldn't she just see how corrupt he was? How black his heart was? That he was completely soulless? And most importantly; that she meant nothing to him?

'Stefan told me about Katherine.' Her eyes caressed his face and her hand slowly moved from his face down to his arm. She pulled him with her. 'Let's dance.' Her hand found his and she entwined their fingers and he followed her as if in slow motion. She was mesmerizing him, binding him to her and he couldn't let go.

'Tell me about her,' Elena said as they were moving in a slow dance in the middle of the floor. 'What was she like?'

Damon searched her eyes and his forehead creasing slightly. He drew a ragged breath and relaxed into her arms a little.

'She was beautiful. A lot like you in that department.' His lips curved up into a small smile.' She was also very complicated and selfish and at times not very kind, but very sexy and seductive.'

Elena couldn't help smiling back.

'So which one of you dated her first?'

Damon chuckled quietly, but he looked fairly impressed by her.

'Nicely deduced.' His features darkened somewhat. 'Ask Stefan, I'm sure his answer differs from mine.'

'What happened? Why did you end things?'

'We didn't.' Damon let out a sigh, and automatically they stopped dancing, just standing there on the dance floor holding each other. 'There was a fire. A tragic fire.'

Elena's eyes filled up with tears and she stood up on her toes to give him a tender kiss.

'I'm sorry.'

Damon shook himself back to the here and now. He didn't understand how she managed to do it, but somehow she always made him spill his guts. It really had to stop.

'Look, Damon, I don't know what's been going on between you and Stefan. But I want you to know, that I'm here for you. And thank you for trusting me enough to tell me about Katherine.' She held his gaze. 'Just know that I trust you too. But you need to stop with the bad boy act.' She gave him a cheeky smile. 'I like you. Don't ruin it.'

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